The Decadent Duke (2 page)

"Is Charles here?'' Louisa asked.

"What a silly question, my wee lass. Of course yer eager bridegroom is here, as well as yer future father-in-law, the marquis. What great good fortune that the Bishop of Lichfield and Coventry is the Marquis Cornwallis's brother and has agreed to officiate today.''

"It will be the wedding of the Season.'' Georgina winked at her eldest sister.

"The Season? It will be the wedding of the
decade
! An even more impressive affair than they gave the Princess Royal,'' their mother declared.

Charlotte said dryly, "I believe that is the whole intent.''

Louisa reached for her bridal bouquet. "We'd better hurry.''

"Nay, that's the last thing we must do. We shall be fashionably late, and make them all wait for a glimpse of the blushing bride.''

"I warned my husband to keep his distance from Frederick. The last thing we want is pistols at dawn.'' Lennox had fought a duel with the Duke of York only months before he had wed Charlotte.

"A wedding duel would guarantee that we go down in the history books,'' Georgina jested.

Jane Gordon threw back her head and laughed with gusto. "I warrant that graze with the bullet improved Frederick's looks.''

"That wasn't the only benefit,'' Georgina pointed out. "If Lennox hadn't been posted to Edinburgh for his audacity in shooting the king's son, he never would have married Charlotte.''

The duchess raised her eyes heavenward and murmured with mock piety, "Amen to that.''

"Did your archrival, the Duchess of Devonshire, show up?''

"Not yet, Susan, though I doubt she'll be able to resist.''

"A wager!'' Georgina announced gleefully. "A guinea says she'll be in the ballroom by the time we make our entrance, and that she'll be sporting the Prince of Wales's feathers atop her wig.''

"I'll take that wager,'' Charlotte declared. "I warrant the Gordon clan en masse is far too formidable and intimidating.''

Georgina's wry glance swept the chamber. "You lot certainly intimidate me.''

"Little liar,'' her mother refuted. "Yer afeared of neither man nor beast, Georgy!''

"Enough folderol,'' Charlotte said firmly. "Let us proceed with the nuptials before the groom has a chance to escape. I shall lead the way.''

"Remember to smile sweetly,'' Duchess Gordon directed, "and though capturing young Cornwallis has earned us the well-deserved envy of the
haut ton
, I order you to banish all traces of smugness from yer lovely faces.''

 
"Dearly beloved, we are gathered together here in the sight of God and in the face of this congregation,'' intoned the exalted Bishop of Lichfield.

And in the face of the formidable Duchess of Gordon,
Georgina added silently. She glanced at her brother, Lord George Huntly, who had escorted their mother to the place of honor.
He looks so handsome in his kilt.
She returned the devilish wink he gave her.

"Charles Cornwallis, wilt thou have this woman to thy wedded wife?'' the Bishop of Lichfield charged.

Charlie looks so young and vulnerable.
Georgina felt a rush of pity rise up in her.
We Gordons are a rum bunch—poor bugger doesn't know what he's letting himself in for.
She glanced at the florid face of Marquis Cornwallis.
The groom, already dominated by his father, will now add his wife's mother to the list . . . From the frying pan into the bloody fire!

The bishop adjusted his purple miter and cleared his throat. "Louisa Gordon, wilt thou have this man to thy wedded husband?''

My sister will make Charlie happy, and coax him from being so timid. Louisa and I had such rowdy fun together—I shall miss her sorely.
Georgina's thoughts flew back to the time their mother had taken her two youngest daughters on her now famous Gordon Highlanders recruiting mission. The daring duchess had wagered with King George that she would enlist more soldiers than any of his royal recruiting officers. Dressed in Highland bonnets and the new Black Watch tartan, the beautiful Gordon ladies, accompanied by six pipers, had visited every market and fair held on the vast Gordon lands. They offered a kiss and a guinea to each and every male who would join the regiment.

"Who giveth this woman to be married to this man?''

Proudly attired in his dress kilt, Alexander, fourth Duke of Gordon, stepped forward. "I do.''

Georgina watched her father join her mother.
They
make a handsome couple. This is the longest they've been together without coming to blows since the last wedding. I wish they could stomach each other. I have my father's black hair and my mother's vivacious personality, and God help me, I love them both dearly.

"Forasmuch as Charles and Louisa have consented together in holy wedlock, I pronounce that they be man and wife together. In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. Amen.'' Bishop Cornwallis closed his prayer book and bestowed a sanctified smile upon the newlyweds.

 
Across the ballroom, George, Prince of Wales, murmured to his close friend the Duke of Bedford, " 'Tis a
fait accompli
, Francis, so you may breathe easy. Congratulations on escaping the clutches of Duchess Gordon and skillfully evading the dreaded institution of marriage yet one more time.''

"Jane certainly had me in her sights for Louisa, but red hair never did attract me for long. After an initial skirmish, my interest waned. As for being leg-shackled, my brother John's marriage has given me such a horror of wedded bliss that I have vowed to avoid it at all costs.''

Prinny shuddered as he thought of his own disastrous nuptials to his cousin Caroline of Brunswick.
I needed so much brandy to face the ceremony that the only thing I recall is my dear friend Francis Russell propping me up.
" 'Tis the world's greatest pity that
amore
and marriage do not go hand in hand.''

"Au contraire!
Making love to a wife is one of life's sweetest pleasures, so long as I'm not her husband,'' Russell quipped.

"Lady Melbourne looks particularly ravishing today.'' Both the prince and Bedford had enjoyed her sexual favors, and each had fathered at least one of her children. Prinny's glance moved to the lady who had accompanied Elizabeth Melbourne, and a heartfelt sigh escaped him. Though for years he had professed his deepest love to Georgianna, Duchess of Devonshire, and had given her a lock of his hair, she always refused to become his mistress. He had been forced to settle for her devoted friendship, which they openly displayed before their aristocratic friends. Prinny raised his eyes from Georgianna's opulent breasts, and they flooded with sentimental tears when he saw that she was sporting the Prince of Wales's feathers. Like iron to a lodestone, Prinny gravitated toward Georgianna, and Bedford followed.

She wafted her ostrich feather fan and sketched a graceful curtsy. "Your Highness ... Francis ... I am delighted you both condescended to attend. 'Twill banish our boredom.''

The Prince of Wales took her outstretched hand to his lips in a theatrical show of affection. "My dearest Georgianna, I am ever at your command.'' He bestowed an elegant bow upon Lady Melbourne. "Lizzie, you look charming, as always.''

"Ravishing,'' Bedford said with a leer. "I know a surefire cure for banishing boredom.''

"Devil roast you, Francis. Your cure takes nine months,'' Lady Melbourne drawled. "Do try not to gloat over your bachelorhood. You will be ensnared in the tender trap sooner or later.''

The Duchess of Gordon, well versed in protocol, came to greet His Royal Highness, the Prince of Wales, before she acknowledged her other guests. "Such an honor, Yer Highness.'' Her words were calculated to stress that the honor was his, not hers. Then to prove her point, she dipped her knee and afforded the gentlemen an eye-popping view of her lush breasts.

"Jane, darling,'' the Duchess of Devonshire gushed, "you've outdone yourself. Young Cornwallis is quite a catch.''

Jane glanced at Francis Russell. "You should have seen the one that got away.'' She slapped her thigh and laughed at her own wit.

The men and Lizzie, thoroughly amused, joined in her laughter.

"Georgianna, dearest, it won't be long before you are husband hunting for yer own daughters. Shall I lend you my rope and teach you how to tie a Gordon knot?''

"My dear Jane, the Devonshire girls won't need a noose,'' the duchess said sweetly.

Jane Gordon was too good-natured not to laugh at the riposte. "Yer wit is exceeded only by yer beauty,'' she said generously.

"Dare I hope that you will be serving your magnificent Highland salmon, my dear duchess?'' Prinny was almost salivating.

" 'Tis the thing that makes a Gordon invitation the most sought after in London—that and our famous whiskey punch.'' The duke owned a salmon fishery on the River Spey, and the wagons that arrived from Scotland always carried barrels of Scotch whiskey.

 
The Gordon sisters gathered around the bride. Georgina kissed Louisa's cheek. "You are now Lady Brome, freed from Mother's control. I urge you to spread your wings like a butterfly.''

Charlotte scoffed. "You two young hellcats were never under her control. Whenever the two of you conspired, mayhem and madness were sure to follow.''

Louisa protested, "Georgy was the instigator. I but followed her brilliant suggestions for diversion.''

"I have no trouble believing you. She is a triple threat. The little baggage has Mother's beauty, breasts, and boldness.''

"You forgot my bawdy sense of humor,'' Georgina protested.

"You got that from Mother too.'' Charlotte nodded her head in their mother's direction. "Look at her, she's got a royal audience at the moment.'' She spied the Duchess of Devonshire. "Ah, I believe I owe you a guinea, Georgy.''

"I don't want your guinea ... what I
do
want is an invitation to Marylebone Manor, where you're staying for the summer. I don't fancy being the lone chick in the nest with Mother for a while. You don't think Lennox will object to my visiting, do you?''

"Lud, no. He's engrossed in the infernal Marylebone Cricket Club that he founded in Dorset Fields. The children will be avid to have you, so I suppose I can force myself to endure you for a fortnight.''

"Georgina, you're always welcome at Kimbolton Castle,'' her sister Susan reminded her.

"Oh, never fear, you and the handsome Duke of Manchester will be next on my list.''

"Hmm, handsome is as handsome does,'' Susan declared with a toss of her head to show that married life was not all blissful.

"Oh, please, no complaints in front of the bride. You will give her a disgust of marriage,'' Charlotte declared.

Georgina hooted. "If she doesn't have a disgust of marriage from observing our parents, the Duke and Duchess of Manchester's trivial tribulations won't make much of an impact.''

"You speak the gospel truth.'' Charlotte looked at their sister Madelina, who had been widowed and remarried within the past year. "You're on your second husband. Surely you can conjure some words of encouragement and wisdom for the bride.''

"Live in the country and keep your husband away from London politics, prostitutes, and private gaming houses.''

"Lud, Madelina, your life must be dull as ditch water. Still, I suppose one of us had to take after Father.'' The Duke of Gordon preferred the country life on his Highland estates and came to London only when it was absolutely necessary. Alexander and Jane had been living separate lives for the past decade.

Georgina glanced across the room at her mother.
I find politics as fascinating as she does, thank heaven.
Jane was holding court with the prince and the Duchess of Devonshire.
The two rivals have far more in common than they would ever admit. Both are leading
political hostesses who love being the center of attention. Each is a beauteous, sensual woman, who sets the fashion in clothes, decor, food, and entertainment. Both are married to powerful dukes of the realm who have shamed them by being blatantly unfaithful with more than one mistress.

Georgina closed her eyes until the tightness left her chest. In spite of her gregarious personality, her parents' estrangement since she was a child had left her vulnerable and often insecure.
I shall never get trapped in a loveless marriage,
she vowed.
I'll never allow myself to become a victim!

Georgina moved among the throng of invited and uninvited wedding guests with ease, despite the grandeur of their titles. She saw the Marquis of Lansdowne with two of his sons, and knew they would both be eager to partner her when the dancing began.

Georgina paused to speak with Lord and Lady Holland and make them feel welcome. "Beth, it is lovely to see you again. Henry, I insist that you partner me in a Scottish reel when the dancing commences.'' Henry and Beth had met and fallen in love on the Continent, despite the fact that the lady was already wed. Because of the romantic liaison, her husband was granted a divorce and Henry Fox did the honorable thing and married her immediately.

Georgina spotted Lord and Lady Jersey too late to avoid exchanging pleasantries. She strived valiantly to keep a straight face. It vastly amused her that George, Earl of Jersey, was the Prince of Wales's lord of the bedchamber, while at the moment Frances, Countess of Jersey, was
mistress
of Prinny's bedchamber.